Nutcracker.



W. N. GRADIGK.

NUTGRAOKER.

APYLIQATION 11,111) 11:11.26, 1912.

Patented May 13, 1913.

P-r-NEEEEE: M IN/r-r'm: fm1. mima Ey jim my The jaw 4 has 'a "UNITED -STATnifitENT OFFICE.

WVILEYN. GRADICK, 0F TYLER, TEXAS, ASSIGNOR TO WOLDERT GROCERY COMPANY,

OF TYLER, TEXAS, A C0 EPURATION OF TEXAS.

NUTCRACKER.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that l', WILEY N. (lannion, citizen of the United States, residing at rlyler, in the county of, Smith and State et' Texas, 1haveinvented certain new and useful lmrovements in Nutcraekers. of which the Following is a specification.

` This invention relates to improvements in nut cracking devices, and especially to certain limprovements in the nut-cracker described 'in Patent No. 1,037.9(36, Sept. 10, 1912, to Frank lV. Moser of Chicago, Illinois.

vThe improvements which form the subject `,matter of this application consist inA inter- 'posing between the rack-bar and the handle or lever, a pawl which is loosely the sliding jaw and is engaged and ope 'ated by the cam on the inner end of the lever.

In the nut-crackers constructed according to the disclosure of/the above mentioned application, it was found that the teeth on the rackbar would break oft when subjected to the action'of the pin on the lever cam, such fault being due in party to the shape of the teeth and in partto the friction and pressure of the pin without any lubrication between the parts, and the commercial necessity of making the device of cheay'i'material and Without machine work. My present im provements avoid these faults as will be appreciated by one skilled 1n th art.

, In) the `accompanying drawing which forms a part of this application, I have illus trated myinvention in a preferred 'torni in the following views Figure 1 is a side elevation of a complete nut-cracker embodying my improvements; Fig.l 2 is 'a detail in section of the sliding `jaw the pawl arranged therein, and a portion of the rack which is engaged by the pawl; Fig. 3 isa f 'agmentary detail, of the operative end of the handle or lever.

Referring to the details oft' the drawing, el represents the fixed jaw of my improved ,nutferacken 'the saine l'ieing cast integral with a vertical extension 5, a horizontal arm 6 at right angles to the extension 5, and a foot 7 on the lower end of the extension conical recess 4 in its face and is supported, and the parts 5 and 7 are stron thened, by a central rib or flange S, and e arm 6 is formed with vertical up- Specification of Letters Patent. Application inea February 26, 19.12.

arranged iu Patented )Ia y 13, 1913. Serial No. 680.075.

per and lower ribs 9 and 10 respectively. .i port ion ot' the rib 9 is cut to form a series ot teeth 9 having vertical faces on their edges toward the fixedjaw and inclined faces on their opposite edges thus giving the teeth broad bases.

The foot is tapped to receive the usual clamping screw ll, l2. hy which the device may be secured to a table. shelf or the like.

13 represents theslidablc jaw in which is a conical recess 13 arranged to register with the corresponding recess 4 in the jaw 4. The slidable jaw l?. is cast with a quasispherical extension 13" in which is formed a recess 13 bounded by parallel vertical walls .1G between which an opening 19 is provided. The side walls 1G ot' the sliding l)aw are extended downwardly below the arm (S as at l'fl and their lower edges terminate in inwardly extending flanges I7 which engage the under side of the arm at opposite sides of the rih 10. In the side wall adjacentl the handle a round opening is provided to receive the cam 20. A lateral extension 15 is also provided on one of the side walls 14 to receive a Cotter-pin 26.

The handle or lever 21 is formed with a laterally extending cam 20 on its lower end, in which is set a steel pin Q2. The cam is journaled in a round opening in the adjacent side wall 1G, and projects into the recess 13c and opening 19. 'The pin 22 loosely engages a hole 23 in a pawl 2a which is arranged in the opening 19, at one side of the cam. A pin 25 extends across the opening 19. with its ends fixed in the walls 16, and is so positioned that the nose of the pawl will engage it when the pawl is moved into position to disengage the rack teeth 95. as shown h v dotted lines, Fig. 2, and will thus prevent the pawl from engaging the teeth as the slidingl jaw is moved away from the, tixed jaw.

A pin 18 is inserted near the outer end of tl i arm (i, after the sliding jaw is mounted on said arm and serves as a stop for the jaw in its outward sliding movement. When the handle 2l is in the position shown in Fig. 1, the pin 22 will have raised the paw] to its inoperative position as indicated by dotted lines` Fig. 2, and thereupon the jaw 13 may be 'lreely moved toward and away from the fixed jaw, but as soon as it has been brought into proper position relative to the latter, the forward movement of the upper end of the handle will rock the cam 20 in its bearfing', depress the pointA of the pawl and bring it lnto engagement with the vertical face of vone of the `teeth 93,'andl the continuation of the pam movement will cause the sliding j'aw to movev forward and thus crack the nut 'placed between the jaws. The cotter pin 26 extends over the caln end ofthe handle and thus retains the cam in its bearing.

It will'be 4apparent that in the forward movements of the sliding j aw, the pawl will slide reelyoverthe teeth even though the handle .should be in' the posit-ion required to eect engagement between theA pawl and teeth, as the pawl is loosely mounted on the pin 221. V

Iam aware that- -in the art of vise construction it is oldto mount a lever eccentrically in a sliding jawand pivot a pawl on such` lever to engage ratchet teeth; I am also av'vare ofy the construction shown in U.-'S. Patent No. 1037966, upon which my invention is an improvement, and I do not claim the equivalent of such constructions, but

slidabluvy mounted on said rack-bar and having a nut-receiving recess in its inner face, and provided with an Aopen slot forming a slideway on said rack-bar, a lever having a solid cam projecting at right-angles from its lower end and journaled in said sliding jaw, a pin projecting from the face of said cani eccentric to the pivot-alexis of the latter, a pawl loosely mounted on -said pin and adapted to engage the rack-teeth upon the downward and rearward movernento the lever, and to be held disengaged. therefrom lwhen said lever is thrown forward and downward..

In testimony wher-ect- I atix my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

v WILEY N..GRADICK; Vitnesses ALEX. VOLDERT, JANET CALDWELL. 

